Recap Roundup: Season 4, Episode 2 “The Lion and the Rose”

This is a selection of written recaps and reviews for the second episode of season 4, in which George R. R. Martin delivered sharp dialogue and a shocking conclusion that was easy to swallow for Sullied and Unsullied alike.

A; Joffrey’s wedding, known to book fans as the Purple Wedding (even though George R.R. Martin never calls it that in A Storm Of Swords), is the closest thing the Song Of Ice And Fire series has to a karmic balancing of the scales by this point in its run.

I could talk about Ramsay hunting human game or Bran demonstrating his growing gifts as a warg or Stannis Baratheon committing even more thoroughly to the Lord of Light, but in this moment, who honestly cares? At long last, the king is dead.

The closing sequence of “The Lion and the Rose”—detailing Joffrey and Margaery’s wedding and reception—is one of the first, a carefully designed piece of theater that is all about moving pieces, each more detailed than the next.

“The Lion and the Rose” was an unusually focused episode of Game of Thrones; we check in with neither Daenerys nor Jon Snow, and see just a few characters who aren’t a part of the tumultuous Royal Wedding. But the main event is the Royal Wedding, which would be riveting even if it didn’t end with such a bang.

“The Lion and the Rose” is another solid episode, made memorable by its final few minutes, but really just keeping pace with what came before. This isn’t a bad thing: better to be modestly successful, on the whole, then to veer wildly from triumph to tragedy.

The first half of “The Lion and the Rose” is very good, even if most of the characters who make their season 4 debuts here feel a bit like the Westeros second string. The second half, though? It’s special.

Eventually I’m going to come up with some more creative and literary descriptions for the emotions I’m feeling after that episode, but this deep sense of satisfaction mixed with horror and confusion and excitement and rapture and how-good-did-that-bird-pie-look-hunger can’t be expressed much beyond the exclamation OMIGOD.

This death is exactly what we need to kick off the season. Game of Thrones is notable on a macro story level for how it tells distinct arc every ten episodes. By killing off a major character immediately after we’ve made it through the woods of act one stakes setting, season four gets to have a very distinct and exciting, Joffrey-less flavour.

Let’s just say it at the top: King Joffrey is dead! Those who’ve read the books have no doubt been waiting for it. Those who haven’t have been praying for it. And after years of waiting, we at long last have a brutal and ugly death scene befitting a cruel, heartless, little punk of a king.

But on a show like “Game of Thrones,” with its three-dimensional characters and their complicated motives, it was oddly comforting to have a guy like Joffrey around to loathe without mitigation. He was a gift to that part of your brain that just likes to be angry, and now he’s gone — undone by a mouthful of poisoned pigeon pie or wine.

Thanks to everyone in comments for pointing me in the direction of new writers; I am your servant in all things recap. For those video fans out there, stay tuned…

Laura Stone:
I’m a lover, NOT a reader. Spoiler-free life! (And thanks for the add!)

Love to see you comment here, Laura! I never forget to read your reviews each week, and so far this season my favorite set to your article has been the first I’ve checked on Monday morning. Very funny!

Thanks, Clob! I try not to clog the pipes over here since I have my thoughts/speculations in a post already, but I do appreciate you clicking! <3 Okay, I'm crawling back into my bottle to worry over who will take the new Top Jerk position. (My money's on Roose!) Cheers!

Walter Harrow:
Does anyone know if Arya appears in the next episode? She wasnt in the preview and they usually only show characters who will be in the episode. I really dont want another week with Arya and The Hound

If I remember correctly she’s listed in the synopsis.

May I ask why you don’t want more of the greatest duo in the story, though? :P

I would classify all three posts (from the NYT blog, Vulture and Mary Sue) as NEW VIEWERS. Here’s why:

Jeremy Egner wrote that Joffrey was poisoned “by a mouthful of poisoned pigeon pie or wine.”

Nina, about Bran’s destination: “Guesses on where that is are welcome in the comments. The Godswood at Winterfell?”

The Mary Sue post, written by Kristy Puchko:“Was the poison meant for her (Cersei)? Or if it was for Joffrey, who planned this clever killing? The Tyrells? Sansa? The “fool” Dontos Hollard? That sexy Dornish prince? Or was it not the wine but the pie?”

Based on the comments sections, all three posts are cleary for those who haven’t read the books. If the authors are really Unsullied I’m not (and will never be) 100% sure, but they seem to be.

Did most of these critics see the first 3 episodes already? I assume they have and that they wrote their reviews weeks ago as they saw the episode. Because none of them seem wise to who poisoned Joffrey, and I thought(hoped) that would be revealed in episode 3.

Tyrion Pimpslap:
Did most of these critics see the first 3 episodes already? I assume they have and that they wrote their reviews weeks ago as they saw the episode. Because none of them seem wise to who poisoned Joffrey, and I thought(hoped) that would be revealed in episode 3.

They could’ve just tried to not spoil anything by writing their recaps after they watched each episode and before watching the next one; rather than watching all three and then going back and trying to sort out what should be said where.

I Rewatched the episode and noticed an interesting little nugget off the beaten path from all the rightful rejoicing over the ending of the episode: When Joffrey asks the crowd what to name his sword, one of the suggestions shouted from crowd was (what sounded like, at least) “Terminus”. A funny bit of last minute sound editing after the walking dead finale?

History of Westeros does like the most fun episode reviews, I like the puns they always throw in there. You guys probably posted the westeros.org review wrong, it sounds more like “hey guys my name is Elio Garcia and I sound like I work at a medieval theme park and David Benioff is a dumbass compared to me because I’m the biggest fan of ASOIAF and HBO sucks balls.

Regarding Yara is it possible that she heads to Mout Cailin to be at a strategic advantage against the Boltons? She will then be absent from the keep for a while which will then lead to Theon negotiating with Yara’s men and the Mout Cailin men to abandon the keep. I wonder if this is where we are going

Reviewer Todd VanDerwaf said that George RR Martin never referred to Joff’s wedding as the PURPLE WEDDING. Is this true? I seem to remember something of how the small folk were calling it that. Or am I remembering the Red wedding?

Looking forward (and everyone’s moved on from this discussion, but whatevs)…

–Interesting. That’s 2 episodes in a row where we name-check Doran Martell or refer to his health. Bodes well for his appearance come Season 5, along with Arianne if not the Snakes.

–Odds on seeing the Kingsmoot rise from 25 percent to 35 percent. Why? Balon Greyjoy is still alive. The longer he’s alive, the more chance we get of Victarion/Euron/Aeron (in that order). If Balon bites it in episode 10? It’s a real good shot at it happening. Episode 3/4? Less chance. Could still happen given compressed events, et al, so it may depend on who Theon finds when he goes to Moat Cailin (odds are no Victarion as we haven’t heard of casting, et cetera).